Perseus
Perseus is the protagonist of Clash of the Titans. He was portrayed by Harry Hamlin in the 1981 film and by Sam Worthington in the 2010 remake. Mythology Perseus, the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty of Danaans there, was the first of the mythic heroes of Greek mythology whose exploits in defeating various archaic monsters provided the founding myths of the Twelve Olympians. Perseus was the Greek hero who killed the Gorgon Medusa, and claimed Andromeda, having rescued her from a sea monster sent by Poseidon in retribution for Queen Cassiopeia declaring herself more beautiful than the Nereids Perseus was the son of Zeus and Danaë, who by her very name, was the archetype of all the Danaans. She was the only child of Acrisius, King of Argos. Disappointed by his lack of luck in having a son, Acrisius consulted the oracle at Delphi, who warned him that he would one day be killed by his daughter's son. Danaë was childless and to keep her so, he imprisoned her in a bronze chamber open to the sky in the courtyard of his palace: This mytheme is also connected to Ares, Oenopion, Eurystheus, etc. Zeus came to her in the form of a shower of gold, and impregnated her. Soon after, their child was born: Perseus 1981 Perseus Calibos (Neil McCarthy), son of the sea goddess Thetis (Maggie Smith), is a young man engaged to marry Princess Andromeda (Judi Bowker), the daughter of Queen Cassiopeia (Siân Phillips) and heir to the rich city of Joppa; but has destroyed diverse creatures including most of Zeus's flying horses (excepting only Pegasus). To punish him, Zeus transforms Calibos into a satyr-like creature later exiled by his people. In revenge, Thetis transports Perseus (Harry Hamlin) from Seriphos to Joppa, where he learns that Andromeda cannot marry unless her suitor successfully answers a riddle, whose failures are burned at the stake. Perseus, wearing a helmet that renders its wearer invisible, captures Pegasus and follows Andromeda to learn a new riddle from Calibos. Perseus is nearly killed by Calibos but escapes, losing his helmet in the process. Perseus presents himself as suitor and correctly answers the riddle, presenting the severed hand of Calibos - Calibos' ring is the answer to the riddle. Perseus wins Andromeda's hand in marriage. Calibos, finding that Thetis cannot act against Perseus, instead demands that she take vengeance on Joppa. At the wedding, Queen Cassiopeia compares Andromeda's beauty to that of Thetis herself, whereupon Thetis demands Andromeda be sacrificed to the Kraken on pain of Joppa's destruction. Perseus seeks a way to defeat the Kraken, while Pegasus is captured by Calibos and his men. Zeus commands Athena (Susan Fleetwood) to give Perseus her owl Bubo; but she orders Hephaestus (Pat Roach) to build a mechanical replica of Bubo instead, who leads Perseus to the Stygian Witches (Flora Robson, Anna Manahan, and Freda Jackson). By taking their magic eye Perseus forces them to reveal that the only way to defeat the Kraken is by using the head of Medusa the Gorgon, who in this version lives at the edge of the Underworld. There, Perseus kills Medusa's canine guardian Cerberus, who slays one of Perseus's companions; whereas two others die on encounter with Medusa herself. Perseus uses the reflective underside of his shield to deceive Medusa, decapitates her, and collects her head; but the shield is dissolved by her blood. As Perseus and his party set to return, Calibos enters their camp and punctures the cloak carrying Medusa's head, causing her blood to produce giant scorpions. Most of the men are killed; but Perseus slays the last Giant Scorpion and thereafter kills Calibos. Weakened by his struggle, Perseus sends Bubo to bring Pegasus; this Bubo does, and later diverts the Kraken until Perseus appears on Pegasus. In the subsequent battle, Bubo and Perseus use Medusa's head to turn the Kraken into stone, and free Andromeda. 2010 Perseus A fisherman by name of Spyros (Pete Postlethwaite) finds a casket afloat in the sea, bearing a baby still living and clasped in the arms of his mother’s corpse. Spyros and his wife Marmara (Elizabeth McGovern) raise the baby as their own and name him "Perseus". Years later, Perseus (Sam Worthington) is fishing with his family when they witness soldiers from the city of Argos destroying a Statue of Zeus. The gods, infuriated at this desecration, unleash the Furies - flying beasts who pursue mortal sinners. The soldiers are attacked and slaughtered by the Furies. The Furies merge and take the form of Hades, who destroys the ship Perseus and his family are on. His family perishes, but Perseus survives and is found by other survivors, soldiers from Argos led by Draco (Mads Mikkelsen). Perseus is brought before King Kepheus (Vincent Regan) and Queen Cassiopeia (Polly Walker) who are celebrating the campaign against the gods. The revelry is cut short by the arrival of Hades, who has been given leave by Zeus (Liam Neeson) to punish the mortals for their defiance of the gods. Hades proclaims that in the upcoming solar eclipse, he will unleash the Kraken against Argos unless the Princess Andromeda (Alexa Davalos) is offered as a sacrifice. Before leaving, he reveals that Perseus is a demigod, the son of Zeus. Perseus is imprisoned by Draco and in captivity meets Io (Gemma Arterton) who tells him of his origin. Many years before, King Acrisius (Jason Flemyng) also tried declaring war against the gods. To punish him, Zeus impersonated Acrisius and impregnated his wife, Queen Danae (Tine Stapelfeldt). Acrisius, driven mad with rage, orders the execution of Dänae and the newborn baby and casts them into the sea in a coffin. As punishment for his continued defiance, Zeus also strikes Acrisius with lightning, transforming him into a monster. Io also reveals that she was cursed with immortality after refusing to give in to Poseidon's advances and has watched over Perseus his entire life, beginning with watching from ashore as his adoptive parents rescue him from the floating coffin, to the present, always protecting him, as he is prophesized to be the only one able to stand up to the Gods. Zeus is convinced by Apollo (Luke Evans), who doesn't trust Hades (Ralph Fiennes), to give Perseus a chance and presents him with an enchanted sword forged on Mt. Olympus and a winged horse named Pegasus. Perseus refuses both gifts but a wise Draco puts the sword into safekeeping. Shortly thereafter, they are attacked by Calibos. Perseus barely manages to hold him at bay and is bitten by Calibos in a desperate move. Draco severs Calibos's hand causing Calibos to flee. The band gives chase only to be attacked by giant scorpions summoned by Calibos’s blood. Although they manage to kill some of them, they are ultimately surrounded by even larger scorpions until they are saved by the Djinn, a band of Arabic desert sorcerers led by Sheikh Suleiman (Ian Whyte). The Djinn, also wishing for the gods' defeat, lends their aid to Perseus and his hand. The group arrives at the lair of the Stygian Witches and learns from them that the only possibility for killing the Kraken is with the head of a gorgon Medusa (Natalia Vodianova) who is residing in a temple in the Underworld. Medusa is able to turn any living creature into stone by making eye contact, and thus capturing her head is essential for battling the Kraken. As they prepare to head into the Underworld, Perseus is approached by Zeus, who offers to make him a god, but when he refuses, gives him a golden drachma which is a fare for Charon, the ferryman of the Underworld. Perseus, Io, Sulieman, Draco and his remaining men Solon (Liam Cunningham ), Eusebius (Nicholas Hoult) and Ixas (Hans Matheson) arrive at the Underworld and the men enter Medusa's lair while Io remains outside, unable to enter. Medusa kills Solon, (who was shot and falls into the fire), Eusebius and Ixas (who have turned to stone), and wounds the shot Draco. Sulieman and Draco wound Medusa and turn to stone, making the ultimate sacrifice. The badly wounded Medusa is beheaded by Perseus, who takes her head. The rest of the body falls into the fire. As he is leaving the temple, he witnesses Calibos creep up behind and murder Io. Perseus and Calibos engage in mortal combat with Calibos having the upper hand and disarming Perseus. Finally coming to terms with who he is, Perseus picks up the Olympian sword and pierces Calibos through the heart, turning him back into Acrisius in human form restoring him to sanity and humility for one last moment. After saying his goodbyes to the dying Io, who urges him forward to save Andromeda and Argos before she dissolves into an ethereal vapor, Perseus mounts Pegasus and hastens back to Argos. In the meantime, Zeus has ordered the Kraken's release. The Cult goes to the palace and seizes Andromeda in order to offer her to the Kraken. While Kraken ravages Argos, Hades reveals to Zeus that while they have been surviving on the people’s adoration, he has been feeding on people's fear and his monster has been channeling even more fear. While the gods have become weaker, Hades has now grown powerful enough to take on Mount Olympus and even destroy it in revenge for his betrayal so many years before. Realizing his mistake too late, Zeus can only rely on Perseus. Perseus dives in to the sea and rescues Andromeda, now the Queen of Argos. She asks him to stay by her side as King, but he claims he is not a leader, but simply a man. Her people will respect her as their Queen. After flying away with Pegasus, Perseus arrives on the island where Zeus's statue was destroyed, and where his family was killed. Zeus meets with him, thanks Perseus for risking so much, and offers once more to make him a god and live with him on Mt. Olympus. Perseus declines, saying he has every thing he needs on earth in his mortal form. As Zeus leaves, he says Perseus needs a companion, and his parting gift is to revive and present Io. Perseus and Io approach one another to embrace. Category:Greeks & Heroes